In England, soccer has been around for almost
two centuries, so it is no strange fact that England's soccer players
are considered amongst the most "complete", having
a bit of everything.
Every young English soccer player, will know how to tackle, regardless
if he's going to be a striker and every defender will be able to head
the ball into the goal almost as precisely as their offensive
teammates.
Of course, this is not necessarily an advantage nowadays for
England, soccer players in today's era of the sport tending to
specialize more and more.
Sure, in Brazil, fans might be show off a passion close to fanaticism
towards their teams, but there's no feeling like the feeling of hearing
50,000 English fans cheer for a corner
like they would for a goal. Or applauding frenetically when one of
England's soccer players on the pitch does a successful hard tackle.
That's why English soccer players always play with their heart and give
out their best when they're on the pitch.
These qualities managed to propel a few top quality famous soccer
players in the light of the World, even since soccer's early days.
Let's meet some of these legendary English soccer players.(You can find
more players from other nationalities at the Famous
Soccer Players section).
England Soccer
Players – Sir Stanley Matthews (1915 – 2000)
Up till this day, Stanley
Matthews is still considered one of the most important players that
England produced. Unlucky enough to be born in an age where soccer was
not appreciated to its fullest and having caught one World War and the
aftermath of both hindered his career, but nevertheless Sir Stanley
Matthews holds some astonishing awards.
He was the first of England's soccer players to be knighted
and the only one to be knighted while still actively playing soccer. He
also won the first European Footballer of the Year award and he holds
the vitality record for playing professional soccer until the age of
50.
England Soccer
Players - Sir Bobby Charlton (1937)
Arguably the best soccer player England has ever produced, Bobby
Charlton was a midfielder with a breathtaking offensive appetite and he
was also well known for striking the ball perfectly from long range,
giving it both power and finesse.
He was one of the few Manchester United players to survive the Munich
air disaster in 1958, when the airplane carrying the English club
crashed. After his physical and mental wounds healed, he managed to
take the English team through a wonderful 1966 World Cup,
eventually winning it and bringing home the first (and only so far)
World or European Cup win.
There's a dispute in English soccer, that questions Bobby Charlton's
reign as the best English soccer player of all time. One of his
contenders is Kevin Keegan, a wonderful English striker
and a renowned manager over the past few decades.
Keegan always had a hunger for goal and his statistics, 217 goals in
559 matches easily show that. But besides being a great goalscorer, he
was also a great passer and a leader on the pitch. In addition, he is
also the only English player to have been named European Player of the
Year twice during his career.
A player that scored 10 goals
in just two World Cups is worthy of everyone's respect, despite the
fact that Lineker was sometimes considered "lazy" because he hardly
created goals for others.
If you were to compare him with one of today's players, I'd say Filippo
Inzaghi would be the closest to Lineker's profile: a fast striker with
a tremendous positioning talent, a 6th sense for goal
and the ability to score one goal every 2 chances he has.
Despite being born near
London, Beckham didn't make his debut in soccer for one of the
capital's teams, but rather for Manchester United, who spotted him as a
young talent ever since an early age. He played most of his career for
Manchester, before joining Real Madrid in 2003.
Beckham is well known for his very precise curled crosses, his assists
and his ability to score from free kicks. But let's face it, it's not
only soccer that brought him his stardom status over the past
8 years, but also his good looks and his extravagant lifestyle.
He is one of the most successful soccer players of today, being a
yearly subscriber to tops that classify footballers by their yearly
income, from club money and endorsements.
